Lorin Weaver
Eng 340
Dr. Archibald
27 February 2012
The American Dream
These three photographs that show a small slice of suburban life in the 70’s are what every American wanted: the Dream. All three of these photos are from Bill Owens’ collection entitled Suburbia which was published in 1973 and entirely in black and white. All of the photos in his publication, including the three that have been selected, were taken in Livermore California’s Amador Valley, smack in the middle of the suburbs. Every one of these photographs was taken with the subject’s permission, and all three that have been chosen are accompanied by a brief caption or quote from the subject in the photograph. Owens also published three other books of photography; Our kind of People: American Groups and Rituals in 1975, Working: I Do It For the Money in 1977, and Leisure in 2005. Although Owens has said that he loves photography, it is not how he makes his living. After creating Our Kind of People and Working: I Do It For the Money, he was unable to support himself on photography alone, and according to Owens himself, “I had to put the cameras away. I became a brew master, owner of a couple of breweries and moved on with my life” (Lang, 2000). He became successful with these endeavors, and then later continued with his photography.
The American Dream is a broad term that is used to encapsulate the ideal life for an American, which for many people meant a nice home, a nice car (or two), a husband who worked hard and a wife who raised the kids. This American Dream is almost so ideal that it doesn’t exist, and it can be looked at in two terms by Ramage, as both a commonplace as well as a commonsense belief. It is a commonplace in the way that it acts as a hope and dream that gets passed down from generation to generation, in hopes that their future will be brighter than their own. It is something that people live by, people strive for it, and continue to believe in it, much like a commonplace belief by Ramage’s definition. As well as a commonsense belief, which is “an article of faith among a small group of like-minded people blind to the limits of their beliefs” (Ramage, 19). The American Dream is something that people continue to put stock in, they continue to believe in it despite no proof that it is attainable or how silly it might seem to fight for it. It has become something that is almost intangible, the commonsense belief of the elite life, when in reality; the American Dream was not like that at all. During the 1970’s, the hippie culture was beginning to fade, and as the Vietnam War came to an end and Nixon resigned after the notorious Watergate scandal in 1972, American Culture began to turn a new leaf, and for many, that meant heading to the suburbs. As a photographer during this innovative time, his communicative purpose was to capture what was happening in an ordinary home, a home just like yours, with a family just like yours, and witness the American Dream behind closed doors. Was it everything people thought it was? Owens explores suburbia in a black and white series of photographs, and I have chosen three that I think exemplify his purpose.
The first photograph was taken before the Vietnam War had officially been declared over. In terms of Barthes three messages, the literal message of the photograph is of a housewife with curlers in her hair, holding a baby in her kitchen. There are kitchen counters to both the left and right of her, the countertop to the right has a stove with some pots and pans and the left counter has the sink. She looks distractedly at the sink full of dirty dishes, with a look of distain. The linguistic message associated with the image is a quote from the subject that reads “How can I worry about the damned dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam?” By looking at this woman, we get the feeling she is unsatisfied and overwhelmed. At first we are unsure of what is bothering the woman, because it is clear she is disturbed by something, but it is not made clear until we read the quote by her, which then clears up any uncertainty. As far as the rhetorical context for this photograph goes, we can see that Owens was trying to capture the woman’s daily routine. She is not dressed up, her baby looks content, almost bored, as if this was a normal occurrence, and the woman looks at the dishes that she knows she has to do, but at the same time cannot comprehend how she can worry about something so trivial when there are more important things going on. But she will worry about housework, as much as she tries not to, because it is her daily life to do so. This woman’s thoughts are typical and we are able to sympathize with her inner conflict, because we also have similar conflicted thoughts.
This photograph relies heavily on the context of it being wartime, and the common feeling of helplessness that Americans felt. In 1973 when this photograph debuted, the audience would probably have been able to relate completely with this feeling of conflict, because they were in a very similar position at the time. Everyone was going about their daily lives, as insignificant it might have felt, all the while the war was still going on thousands of miles away. They knew people were dying, but in the end, there were still dishes in everyone’s sink that they had to do. Looking at this photograph today, the audience is still very sympathetic towards this woman, it was a point in time no one will be able to forget, it is a piece of history that will remain with Americans everywhere. We are very familiar with the concept of war and death, with many loved ones and heroes being overseas and in danger. It can feel very disorienting to know people are putting their lives on the line every day, while we sit in a class room or take care of a home. It is a feeling of unimportance and dissatisfaction.
The metaphorical and symbolic message would be the dishes, which could represent this woman’s daily struggles and her own personal conflicts within herself. They represent her day to day life, as mundane as it might seem to an outsider. The fact that the woman acknowledges that fact, that the dishes in retrospect are not as important as other things going on in the world, tells us that she looks at her own life and responsibilities as less important and less significant in comparison. People are able to relate to this feeling of insignificance in some way, and audience will identify with that feeling. When things are put into perspective, many people suddenly realize what is truly important. As far as the ethos for this picture, some may wonder if it is ethical for the woman to feel bad about worrying about the dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam, or is it a pointless worry for her? Should she ignore the problems happening in other parts of the world which are out of her control and just focus on the problems in front of her? It is merely a matter if people are able to emotionally connect with the woman’s inner conflict.
The second photograph’s literal message is a family of three, a woman, man and their baby who are standing in their kitchen. The woman is in the middle of feeding the baby who is lying in a baby chair on the counter, and the man stands a few steps behind her, with a drink in his hand. His facial expression is slightly blank, and a little off guard. He is balding and wears glasses, and is wearing a turtleneck. The woman has a friendly look to her, and smiles slightly. On the counter next to the baby is a bowl of fruit, whether they are decorative or real, isn’t made apparent. They both look well dressed and put together, and the kitchen is big and clean with lots of windows that look out over the large back deck. The textual message that goes along with the photo is “We’re really happy. Our kids are healthy, we eat good food, and we have a really nice home.” It is a simple statement, which can say a lot. During this time in American history, it really was a blessing to have all of those things. The war was coming to a close shortly, and people were counting their blessings. But were families in suburbia such as this one thinking about that? Unlike the woman in the first photograph, this woman is dressed nice, put together with her makeup and hair done. This woman has her husband by her side, also unlike the first one. Is this woman thinking about what’s happening in the world, or is she worried about her material items and her nice home? It is left up to the viewer’s interpretation.
The symbolic message within this photograph would be that the subjects in this photo equate success with happiness. Because they have a nice home, good food and money, they consider themselves happy. This symbolizes the American Dream, and if you had all these things, you were “happy”, how could you not be? At a first glance, the viewer might agree with their statement, yes they have it all. But many things within the photo tell us otherwise, such as the fact that the man has a drink in his hand, which looks to be alcoholic, and their expressions and body language. Because the man is a few steps behind the woman, and is not appearing to be involved with the feeding of the child and has a flat expression on his face, he strikes the viewer as feeling uncomfortable. Despite this distance between the two people, the woman still smiles and puts a good face on for the picture. This is something the readers are able to identify with, as far as putting on a show in order to be something we weren’t. Although we don’t know the full story of what just happened before and after the picture was taken, it was merely a moment, which relates to Berger’s ideas on photography in his essay entitled Understanding Photography where he states “A photograph is a result of the photographer’s decision that it is worth recording that this particular event or this particular object has been seen. If everything that existed were continually being photographed, every photograph would become meaningless.” However, we are still inferring that the woman tries her best to put on a brave face. As far as the ethos and pathos go for this photograph, it is necessary to ask if it is ethical for these people to consider themselves happy because they have material items? Is it right for that to be the standard of happiness during that time period?
The photographer set out to capture an ordinary moment in this family’s day, which it appears he succeeded at. The message conveyed is that they are living a utopia-like life because there is a mother and a father, both well dressed in a nice, clean, big kitchen. They claim to be happy because of these things, but if you look closer, the message seems to shift to something less perfect. As far as what today’s audience would think while looking at this photograph, they would probably scoff at it, and look at it with a feminists’ point of view. The woman is clearly taking responsibility for the baby as the man with the drink stands idly back, uninvolved. The woman’s hairstyle and dress is that of a put together housewife, which is something that many modern women don’t do anymore. This picture reeks of convention, the mother being the caregiver and the father just relaxing after his day at work, drink in hand. Today, the modern world is much less conventional, therefore a lot of families probably can’t relate to this picture anymore.
The third photograph’s literal message is also of a couple, but this one has no child in it. A woman is sitting outside on a blanket in what looks like a park. There is sidewalk right next to her, and they are sitting in the shade of a tree. There is a man laying face down next to her on the blanket, and he is wearing a hat so we cannot see his face, and we get the impression he is sleeping. The woman is dressed up; she has on white platform heels and a dress with a white collar. Her hair is done in a fancy up do, with pieces curled and pinned up. The man looks less put together and is wearing just a white tank top and pants we can’t really see. The woman’s expression looks bored; she sits slumped over, her left leg folded under her and her arms resting on her right knee. The textual message associated with this photograph is “I really love him.” This caption is what got me to pick this photo over another one I was considering, because alone the picture is powerful, but we are not quite sure what is happening in it just by looking at the couple. But reading the comment from the woman and then looking at the photograph, the woman clearly looks like she is trying to convince herself as well as who she said this to that she loves him. She looks uncomfortable, unhappy, and unsatisfied. These emotions are visible even before reading the quote, but with it, these emotions become tangible things that jump right out of the picture.
The reason why the photo becomes so vivid after seeing the quote is because it becomes so personal, that the viewer is immediately able to relate to the woman. It makes the man look like the bad guy, the inattentive boyfriend who probably doesn’t treat her very well. He appears to be too tired to even look up to have his photograph taken, and the woman is probably embarrassed by his behavior, and by saying “I really love him” it is almost as if she is making an excuse for him. This interaction between the two of them is a huge part of the symbolic message and representation for the type of couple that a lot of people get sucked into, where one is more interested in the other. This raises the question, is it ethical for the man to ignore the woman? And more so is it logical for her to stay with him if that really is the case? Both of these questions have clear cut answers to the outsider, but for those who are in a relationship like that, the answers seem less apparent.
As a series, these images stood out to me because of their stark contrast to the rest of Bill Owens’ work. There were many like them in his publication Suburbia, but these three had aspects that I could relate to on a personal level, which I cannot necessarily say for the rest of his work. I really found all the photos fascinating in a spooky way, because each individual in the photographs seemed to be saying something very different than what they showing to the photographer. I felt as if each photograph had an extensive back story to it, that their lives were on the fast track and were paused for just a second to get that picture taken. These particular pictures would appeal to primarily parents, or people who were around during the 70’s. Young people are also able to relate to the photos, but within an entirely different context. It was almost as Bill Owens was trying to expose something about suburban life and the American dream. Is it what we really want, and what do we do once we finally have it?
Photograph 1:
Photograph 2:
Photograph 3:
Works Cited:
Barthes, Roland. “Rhetoric of the Image.”
Berger, John. “Understanding a Photograph.”
Owens, Bill. “How can I worry about the damned dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam?” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California.
Owens, Bill. “We’re really happy. Our kids are healthy, we eat good food, and we have a really nice home.” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California.
Owens, Bill. “I really love him.” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California. "Photographer, Brew Master, Publisher: Bill Owens." Interview by Doug Lang. Art a GoGo. 1999. Web. 27 Feb. 2012.
Ramage, John. “Rhetoric, A User’s Guide.” P. 12-19
Brandon Tarby’s Review Questions 1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions. I think she did a very good job using most of the theories and explaining how they pertained to her photos in detail. It seems she understands the theories and the steps to rhetorical analysis.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions. The argument purpose that the paper describes is that of showing the American Dream by showing suburbia towns with wives working and doing the dishes with the kids. I think it’s appropriate and I think she did a good job connecting the argument with each of the photos.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions. The claim in this paper seems to be that Owens wanted to show American’s in the 70’s what small town America was like and the American dream. She did a good job connecting it to the photo’s and also did a good job of leading the paper into a discovery of the claim. Perhaps talk more about the claim at the end instead of ending so abruptly.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis. She did a great job using theories in this paper. She used Barthes three idea’s of the literal message, linguistic message, and the textual message. Also used ethos, pathos, and logos very nicely in each analysis of the photographs. She used denotation and connotation in each analysis. A suggestion is to put the denotation first before getting into the ‘deeper’ part of the analysis. She used Ramage’s commonplace and commonsense belief in describing all of the photos. All in all I think she did a great job and proved to be very literate when it comes to the various theories and theorists.
Peer Review-Jessica Allebach
1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
Absolutely. She clearly identifies many rhetorical terms and how they apply to these photos. She does so in an organized and clear fashion. She analyzes each photo individually and then brings them all together to make her final claim at the end. Honestly, I'm envious of how well she grasped the concept of a rhetorical analysis - it gave me insight into how to revise my own paper. I can't think of any suggestions, perhaps further exploring the audience and the photographer himself.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
She describes the argument of each photo as portraying the American Dream with the shadow of the war in the background. It is an appropriate argument and she supports it quite well in her analyzing of each individual photo. Comparing the way the photo applies to both the audience then and the audience today may strengthen her purpose.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions. She incoorporates the elements of her analysis and brings them all together to make a claim at the very end. I like this strategy. She claims that these photos work together to portray what the American Dream looked like in reality. This argument is appropriate and quite effectively presented. The entire analysis works to support this claim. Spending more time discussing this connection would be my only suggestion.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis. She uses Barthe's ideas of 3 messages and many of Ramage's ideas (including commonplace, commensense belief, context, and his ideas of audience experience). She uses ethos, pathos, and logos effectively, also. She successfully pinpoints what rhetorical tool she is using and who it comes from. I can't think of any writer that should be included to help this paper, although I think she needs to spend a bit more time talking about the photographer and the effect he had on these photos and also on the first reaction to this photo.
Peer Review-Marteena Oliphant
1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The author did an excellent job of demonstrating her knowledge of Rhetorical Analysis, and the details in her paper prove just that. She was descriptive in her writing, showing a thorough examination of the messages that the photos were trying to convey. She exhibits the familiarity with the rhetorical terms we have learned and discussed from the reading and class sessions.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The paper was used to discuss the highly coveted concept of "living the american dream". The paper makes the reader feel a sense of nostalgia, almost as if they were alive in the time period described in her writing as well, as through the images that she focused on in the paper. The paper was very effective in illustrating just what the american dream stood for, which was happiness, strong familial and social ties, the acquisition of monetary wealth, and the ideal of having the bread winning husband and the highly domesticated housewife. The bigger picture was aiming for the american dream in the midst of a war.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
As the author, Lorin's argument is that these photos show what the american dream was really like. There have always been fanciful images painted to make this glorified time frame seem so appealing. However, these phots have a rawness to them, and her argument is that these photos provide an example of what life could have been like if people in this day and age were alive at that time. Most of us do not know the truth behind what history tells to us, however these photographs act as a gate way to the practical reality of the american people during that time frame. There could have been a better conclusion, to end with one last statement to grip the readers attention, but over all the argument claim was effectively presented.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis.
She uses a lot of references once again, to the themes and styles of authors that we learned in class. She definitely demonstrated that she understood and could apply the information we learned which is what every writer should have done for this assignment. The denoting of the photographs may have been more effective if they led into the connoting of each photo, so that the reader could understand why the subjects and objects in the photos operate the way that they do. More information behind the photographer would have helped the audience understand his view on the aesthetics of life in this era.
Eng 340
Dr. Archibald
27 February 2012
The American Dream
These three photographs that show a small slice of suburban life in the 70’s are what every American wanted: the Dream. All three of these photos are from Bill Owens’ collection entitled Suburbia which was published in 1973 and entirely in black and white. All of the photos in his publication, including the three that have been selected, were taken in Livermore California’s Amador Valley, smack in the middle of the suburbs. Every one of these photographs was taken with the subject’s permission, and all three that have been chosen are accompanied by a brief caption or quote from the subject in the photograph. Owens also published three other books of photography; Our kind of People: American Groups and Rituals in 1975, Working: I Do It For the Money in 1977, and Leisure in 2005. Although Owens has said that he loves photography, it is not how he makes his living. After creating Our Kind of People and Working: I Do It For the Money, he was unable to support himself on photography alone, and according to Owens himself, “I had to put the cameras away. I became a brew master, owner of a couple of breweries and moved on with my life” (Lang, 2000). He became successful with these endeavors, and then later continued with his photography.
The American Dream is a broad term that is used to encapsulate the ideal life for an American, which for many people meant a nice home, a nice car (or two), a husband who worked hard and a wife who raised the kids. This American Dream is almost so ideal that it doesn’t exist, and it can be looked at in two terms by Ramage, as both a commonplace as well as a commonsense belief. It is a commonplace in the way that it acts as a hope and dream that gets passed down from generation to generation, in hopes that their future will be brighter than their own. It is something that people live by, people strive for it, and continue to believe in it, much like a commonplace belief by Ramage’s definition. As well as a commonsense belief, which is “an article of faith among a small group of like-minded people blind to the limits of their beliefs” (Ramage, 19). The American Dream is something that people continue to put stock in, they continue to believe in it despite no proof that it is attainable or how silly it might seem to fight for it. It has become something that is almost intangible, the commonsense belief of the elite life, when in reality; the American Dream was not like that at all.
During the 1970’s, the hippie culture was beginning to fade, and as the Vietnam War came to an end and Nixon resigned after the notorious Watergate scandal in 1972, American Culture began to turn a new leaf, and for many, that meant heading to the suburbs. As a photographer during this innovative time, his communicative purpose was to capture what was happening in an ordinary home, a home just like yours, with a family just like yours, and witness the American Dream behind closed doors. Was it everything people thought it was? Owens explores suburbia in a black and white series of photographs, and I have chosen three that I think exemplify his purpose.
The first photograph was taken before the Vietnam War had officially been declared over. In terms of Barthes three messages, the literal message of the photograph is of a housewife with curlers in her hair, holding a baby in her kitchen. There are kitchen counters to both the left and right of her, the countertop to the right has a stove with some pots and pans and the left counter has the sink. She looks distractedly at the sink full of dirty dishes, with a look of distain. The linguistic message associated with the image is a quote from the subject that reads “How can I worry about the damned dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam?” By looking at this woman, we get the feeling she is unsatisfied and overwhelmed. At first we are unsure of what is bothering the woman, because it is clear she is disturbed by something, but it is not made clear until we read the quote by her, which then clears up any uncertainty. As far as the rhetorical context for this photograph goes, we can see that Owens was trying to capture the woman’s daily routine. She is not dressed up, her baby looks content, almost bored, as if this was a normal occurrence, and the woman looks at the dishes that she knows she has to do, but at the same time cannot comprehend how she can worry about something so trivial when there are more important things going on. But she will worry about housework, as much as she tries not to, because it is her daily life to do so. This woman’s thoughts are typical and we are able to sympathize with her inner conflict, because we also have similar conflicted thoughts.
This photograph relies heavily on the context of it being wartime, and the common feeling of helplessness that Americans felt. In 1973 when this photograph debuted, the audience would probably have been able to relate completely with this feeling of conflict, because they were in a very similar position at the time. Everyone was going about their daily lives, as insignificant it might have felt, all the while the war was still going on thousands of miles away. They knew people were dying, but in the end, there were still dishes in everyone’s sink that they had to do. Looking at this photograph today, the audience is still very sympathetic towards this woman, it was a point in time no one will be able to forget, it is a piece of history that will remain with Americans everywhere. We are very familiar with the concept of war and death, with many loved ones and heroes being overseas and in danger. It can feel very disorienting to know people are putting their lives on the line every day, while we sit in a class room or take care of a home. It is a feeling of unimportance and dissatisfaction.
The metaphorical and symbolic message would be the dishes, which could represent this woman’s daily struggles and her own personal conflicts within herself. They represent her day to day life, as mundane as it might seem to an outsider. The fact that the woman acknowledges that fact, that the dishes in retrospect are not as important as other things going on in the world, tells us that she looks at her own life and responsibilities as less important and less significant in comparison. People are able to relate to this feeling of insignificance in some way, and audience will identify with that feeling. When things are put into perspective, many people suddenly realize what is truly important. As far as the ethos for this picture, some may wonder if it is ethical for the woman to feel bad about worrying about the dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam, or is it a pointless worry for her? Should she ignore the problems happening in other parts of the world which are out of her control and just focus on the problems in front of her? It is merely a matter if people are able to emotionally connect with the woman’s inner conflict.
The second photograph’s literal message is a family of three, a woman, man and their baby who are standing in their kitchen. The woman is in the middle of feeding the baby who is lying in a baby chair on the counter, and the man stands a few steps behind her, with a drink in his hand. His facial expression is slightly blank, and a little off guard. He is balding and wears glasses, and is wearing a turtleneck. The woman has a friendly look to her, and smiles slightly. On the counter next to the baby is a bowl of fruit, whether they are decorative or real, isn’t made apparent. They both look well dressed and put together, and the kitchen is big and clean with lots of windows that look out over the large back deck. The textual message that goes along with the photo is “We’re really happy. Our kids are healthy, we eat good food, and we have a really nice home.” It is a simple statement, which can say a lot. During this time in American history, it really was a blessing to have all of those things. The war was coming to a close shortly, and people were counting their blessings. But were families in suburbia such as this one thinking about that? Unlike the woman in the first photograph, this woman is dressed nice, put together with her makeup and hair done. This woman has her husband by her side, also unlike the first one. Is this woman thinking about what’s happening in the world, or is she worried about her material items and her nice home? It is left up to the viewer’s interpretation.
The symbolic message within this photograph would be that the subjects in this photo equate success with happiness. Because they have a nice home, good food and money, they consider themselves happy. This symbolizes the American Dream, and if you had all these things, you were “happy”, how could you not be? At a first glance, the viewer might agree with their statement, yes they have it all. But many things within the photo tell us otherwise, such as the fact that the man has a drink in his hand, which looks to be alcoholic, and their expressions and body language. Because the man is a few steps behind the woman, and is not appearing to be involved with the feeding of the child and has a flat expression on his face, he strikes the viewer as feeling uncomfortable. Despite this distance between the two people, the woman still smiles and puts a good face on for the picture. This is something the readers are able to identify with, as far as putting on a show in order to be something we weren’t. Although we don’t know the full story of what just happened before and after the picture was taken, it was merely a moment, which relates to Berger’s ideas on photography in his essay entitled Understanding Photography where he states “A photograph is a result of the photographer’s decision that it is worth recording that this particular event or this particular object has been seen. If everything that existed were continually being photographed, every photograph would become meaningless.” However, we are still inferring that the woman tries her best to put on a brave face. As far as the ethos and pathos go for this photograph, it is necessary to ask if it is ethical for these people to consider themselves happy because they have material items? Is it right for that to be the standard of happiness during that time period?
The photographer set out to capture an ordinary moment in this family’s day, which it appears he succeeded at. The message conveyed is that they are living a utopia-like life because there is a mother and a father, both well dressed in a nice, clean, big kitchen. They claim to be happy because of these things, but if you look closer, the message seems to shift to something less perfect. As far as what today’s audience would think while looking at this photograph, they would probably scoff at it, and look at it with a feminists’ point of view. The woman is clearly taking responsibility for the baby as the man with the drink stands idly back, uninvolved. The woman’s hairstyle and dress is that of a put together housewife, which is something that many modern women don’t do anymore. This picture reeks of convention, the mother being the caregiver and the father just relaxing after his day at work, drink in hand. Today, the modern world is much less conventional, therefore a lot of families probably can’t relate to this picture anymore.
The third photograph’s literal message is also of a couple, but this one has no child in it. A woman is sitting outside on a blanket in what looks like a park. There is sidewalk right next to her, and they are sitting in the shade of a tree. There is a man laying face down next to her on the blanket, and he is wearing a hat so we cannot see his face, and we get the impression he is sleeping. The woman is dressed up; she has on white platform heels and a dress with a white collar. Her hair is done in a fancy up do, with pieces curled and pinned up. The man looks less put together and is wearing just a white tank top and pants we can’t really see. The woman’s expression looks bored; she sits slumped over, her left leg folded under her and her arms resting on her right knee. The textual message associated with this photograph is “I really love him.” This caption is what got me to pick this photo over another one I was considering, because alone the picture is powerful, but we are not quite sure what is happening in it just by looking at the couple. But reading the comment from the woman and then looking at the photograph, the woman clearly looks like she is trying to convince herself as well as who she said this to that she loves him. She looks uncomfortable, unhappy, and unsatisfied. These emotions are visible even before reading the quote, but with it, these emotions become tangible things that jump right out of the picture.
The reason why the photo becomes so vivid after seeing the quote is because it becomes so personal, that the viewer is immediately able to relate to the woman. It makes the man look like the bad guy, the inattentive boyfriend who probably doesn’t treat her very well. He appears to be too tired to even look up to have his photograph taken, and the woman is probably embarrassed by his behavior, and by saying “I really love him” it is almost as if she is making an excuse for him. This interaction between the two of them is a huge part of the symbolic message and representation for the type of couple that a lot of people get sucked into, where one is more interested in the other. This raises the question, is it ethical for the man to ignore the woman? And more so is it logical for her to stay with him if that really is the case? Both of these questions have clear cut answers to the outsider, but for those who are in a relationship like that, the answers seem less apparent.
As a series, these images stood out to me because of their stark contrast to the rest of Bill Owens’ work. There were many like them in his publication Suburbia, but these three had aspects that I could relate to on a personal level, which I cannot necessarily say for the rest of his work. I really found all the photos fascinating in a spooky way, because each individual in the photographs seemed to be saying something very different than what they showing to the photographer. I felt as if each photograph had an extensive back story to it, that their lives were on the fast track and were paused for just a second to get that picture taken. These particular pictures would appeal to primarily parents, or people who were around during the 70’s. Young people are also able to relate to the photos, but within an entirely different context. It was almost as Bill Owens was trying to expose something about suburban life and the American dream. Is it what we really want, and what do we do once we finally have it?
Photograph 1:
Photograph 2:
Photograph 3:
Works Cited:
Barthes, Roland. “Rhetoric of the Image.”
Berger, John. “Understanding a Photograph.”
Owens, Bill. “How can I worry about the damned dishes when there are children dying in Vietnam?” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California.
Owens, Bill. “We’re really happy. Our kids are healthy, we eat good food, and we have a really nice home.” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California.
Owens, Bill. “I really love him.” 1973. Photograph. Suburbia, California.
"Photographer, Brew Master, Publisher: Bill Owens." Interview by Doug Lang. Art a GoGo. 1999. Web. 27 Feb. 2012.
Ramage, John. “Rhetoric, A User’s Guide.” P. 12-19
Brandon Tarby’s Review Questions
1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
I think she did a very good job using most of the theories and explaining how they pertained to her photos in detail. It seems she understands the theories and the steps to rhetorical analysis.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The argument purpose that the paper describes is that of showing the American Dream by showing suburbia towns with wives working and doing the dishes with the kids. I think it’s appropriate and I think she did a good job connecting the argument with each of the photos.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The claim in this paper seems to be that Owens wanted to show American’s in the 70’s what small town America was like and the American dream. She did a good job connecting it to the photo’s and also did a good job of leading the paper into a discovery of the claim. Perhaps talk more about the claim at the end instead of ending so abruptly.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis.
She did a great job using theories in this paper. She used Barthes three idea’s of the literal message, linguistic message, and the textual message. Also used ethos, pathos, and logos very nicely in each analysis of the photographs. She used denotation and connotation in each analysis. A suggestion is to put the denotation first before getting into the ‘deeper’ part of the analysis. She used Ramage’s commonplace and commonsense belief in describing all of the photos. All in all I think she did a great job and proved to be very literate when it comes to the various theories and theorists.
Peer Review-Jessica Allebach
1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
Absolutely. She clearly identifies many rhetorical terms and how they apply to these photos. She does so in an organized and clear fashion. She analyzes each photo individually and then brings them all together to make her final claim at the end. Honestly, I'm envious of how well she grasped the concept of a rhetorical analysis - it gave me insight into how to revise my own paper. I can't think of any suggestions, perhaps further exploring the audience and the photographer himself.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
She describes the argument of each photo as portraying the American Dream with the shadow of the war in the background. It is an appropriate argument and she supports it quite well in her analyzing of each individual photo. Comparing the way the photo applies to both the audience then and the audience today may strengthen her purpose.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
She incoorporates the elements of her analysis and brings them all together to make a claim at the very end. I like this strategy. She claims that these photos work together to portray what the American Dream looked like in reality. This argument is appropriate and quite effectively presented. The entire analysis works to support this claim. Spending more time discussing this connection would be my only suggestion.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis.
She uses Barthe's ideas of 3 messages and many of Ramage's ideas (including commonplace, commensense belief, context, and his ideas of audience experience). She uses ethos, pathos, and logos effectively, also. She successfully pinpoints what rhetorical tool she is using and who it comes from. I can't think of any writer that should be included to help this paper, although I think she needs to spend a bit more time talking about the photographer and the effect he had on these photos and also on the first reaction to this photo.
Peer Review-Marteena Oliphant
1. Does the writer understand the concept of a rhetorical analysis and does the paper demonstrate its application? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The author did an excellent job of demonstrating her knowledge of Rhetorical Analysis, and the details in her paper prove just that. She was descriptive in her writing, showing a thorough examination of the messages that the photos were trying to convey. She exhibits the familiarity with the rhetorical terms we have learned and discussed from the reading and class sessions.
2. What argument / communicative purpose does the paper describe for the photographs it uses. Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
The paper was used to discuss the highly coveted concept of "living the american dream". The paper makes the reader feel a sense of nostalgia, almost as if they were alive in the time period described in her writing as well, as through the images that she focused on in the paper. The paper was very effective in illustrating just what the american dream stood for, which was happiness, strong familial and social ties, the acquisition of monetary wealth, and the ideal of having the bread winning husband and the highly domesticated housewife. The bigger picture was aiming for the american dream in the midst of a war.
3. What is the argument claim put forward for the photograph(s) under analysis in the paper? Is it appropriate? Effectively presented? Why or why not. Give suggestions.
As the author, Lorin's argument is that these photos show what the american dream was really like. There have always been fanciful images painted to make this glorified time frame seem so appealing. However, these phots have a rawness to them, and her argument is that these photos provide an example of what life could have been like if people in this day and age were alive at that time. Most of us do not know the truth behind what history tells to us, however these photographs act as a gate way to the practical reality of the american people during that time frame. There could have been a better conclusion, to end with one last statement to grip the readers attention, but over all the argument claim was effectively presented.
4. What did you like about how the various visual/rhetorical theorists (Berger/Faigley/Ramage/Blakesly&Brooke/Barthes) were used in the paper? What could be improved about how the paper uses these theorists? What suggestions do you have for the writer? Be as specific as possible by discussing each theorist one at a time and how the paper uses them. Also, give suggestions of theorists that the writer does not use but might be useful in his/her rhetorical analysis.
She uses a lot of references once again, to the themes and styles of authors that we learned in class. She definitely demonstrated that she understood and could apply the information we learned which is what every writer should have done for this assignment. The denoting of the photographs may have been more effective if they led into the connoting of each photo, so that the reader could understand why the subjects and objects in the photos operate the way that they do. More information behind the photographer would have helped the audience understand his view on the aesthetics of life in this era.